The effort to remove the giant rolls from the Lochsa River is on hold until unseasonably high flows subside.
John Cardwell of the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality at Lewiston said the toilet paper is neither toxic nor a danger to the environment.
“It could be considered to be biodegradable, but that is not exactly what we would like to have happen,” he said. “We are treating it like any other deleterious material, or litter, if you will, and we have water-quality standards that restrict disposal of litter in the state’s waters.”
A tractor-trailer carrying unprocessed toilet paper from the Clearwater Paper mill in Lewiston crashed July 15 on U.S. 12 and spilled eight of the massive rolls into the upper reaches of the wild and scenic river near Powell.
A recovery crew from Miles Towing of Kooskia removed two of the rolls earlier this week. Because the saturated rolls fell apart during the removal, the effort was halted.
“If we try to pull them out in the condition they are in, we will make a bigger mess than they are now,” said Cardwell.
The flow of the river, which measured about 3,600 cubic feet per second Thursday, is projected to fall to about 1,500 cfs by Aug. 1. As the water level drops, Cardwell said the portion of the rolls not exposed to water should dry and become more stable. That includes the cardboard cores that are weak from saturation.
“If we had a more substantial core, we might be able to work with those rolls a little sooner,” he said. “Right now, the way the situation is, we think once the water goes down we will be able to work with them a little bit easier.”
Heather Berg, wild and scenic river coordinator for the Clearwater National Forest, said the agency wants the rolls removed but agrees the best way to do that is to wait for flows to drop.
“It’s toilet paper; it’s an eyesore, but it’s not an environmental emergency, and waiting is really the best option right now,” Berg said.
The company that owns the truck, C.H. Robinson, is assisting with the recovery effort, and its insurance company is expected to pay for the work. The Lochsa River is part of the national Wild and Scenic River system.
The corridor has been the subject of scrutiny and debate since major oil companies were given permission to move giant oversized loads of refinery equipment along the highway that follows the river.
